South Texas gardeners must plan to battle wind

CORPUS CHRISTI - The strong winds of the past few weeks in the Coastal Bend remind us that wind must be considered when we plan our landscapes. If you want long-term protection from the wind, then you need to think about trees. Trees planted in open areas create wind breaks. If that is your goal, then dense planting is the key. Instead of a single row of trees planted twenty feet apart, a good windbreak will need 3-5 rows of trees planted 10-15 feet apart. As they grow, consider the trees on the windward side to be sacrificial. They will take the brunt of the wind and allow those on the leeward side to have a better growth pattern.

No matter where you live, you will want to help your tree with its battle against blustery South

Texas winds by staking it. Adding three posts evenly spaced around your tree will provide good support to help it grow straight no matter which way the wind blows. In most areas, you can remove tree stakes after about a year. That time will probably have to double for our area in order for tree trunks to get more size and for root systems to further expand.

You should either use a wide tree strap, strips of strong cloth, or old pantyhose around the trunk to prevent wire or rope from cutting into the tree trunk. Rope can be tied to those and then attached to the stakes for support. Every month or two, it is also a good idea to move the guide wires up and down to different areas of the trunk so that they don’t cut into the bark.

Trees are not your only source of wind protection. You also can use fences and buildings to provide some protection for wind sensitive plants, especially those with large leaves that shred in the wind. Create micro climates using existing structures and fences to block wind in small areas allowing you to plant large leafed plants like philodendrons.

If you don’t have much wind protection, then select plants and trees with smaller leaves. You will notice that many of the South Texas native plants have small leaves that help them survive in our windy, dry climate.

You can also create short term wind protection by placing large tomato cages around young plants and covering the bottom 1-2 feet of the cage with several sheets of newspaper to give some wind protection right after planting. This common practice with tomatoes can be applied to other perennials in windy regions.

You also need to remember to keep new plants adequately watered and mulched. Wind will draw moisture from the leaves and thus require more irrigation to keep plants and trees properly watered. A thick layer of hardwood mulch will not only hold in moisture in the soil providing more water for plants to use in windy conditions, but it also will reduce soil loss due to wind erosion.